You know those people that get on your nerves? The ones that rub you the wrong way? We all have them. It's kind of a part of life. But it's also a learning opportunity.

There's no way in the world that we'll get along with everyone. I don't expect or believe that's possible. What I do know is possible is that we can grow and improve inwardly and outwardly in situations where friction exists during interactions with others.

I recently witnessed and was able to provide counsel for an interpersonal interaction where frustration was mounting and about to explode. There are several variables that determine how to behave when someone's getting on our nerves but I'll only cover a few for us here.

First, we want to check our attitudes. This includes our thoughts, feelings and motives for receiving another's actions as irritations. In the situation I witnessed, the person who resembled the photo above was frustrated because of unmet expectations.

Second, we need to check for understanding. We need to know if the other party has the necessary knowledge, tools and skills to meet the communicated objectives.

Third, we must check our words. It's easy when someone's getting our nerves to be sarcastic, snotty, bratty and the like. Negative words and a condescending tone never correct a deteriorating interpersonal interaction. Use every opportunity possible to speak life into every situation. And if you mess up, when you realize it, apologize sincerely.

If you employ these three strategies the next time someone's pushing your buttons, you'll reap the benefits of being a peacemaker. And if you're skilled at bringing peace into heated situations, that makes you a problem solver!

I used to be afraid of everything and would run from any type of battle that arose. Partly because I wasn't trained in warfare and partly because the lack of ignorance about how to ﻿war effectively left me﻿ with a record of failed scirmishes and casualties that I didn't want to continue racking up. I'm not afraid anymore and my deliverance and courage are proof that you can live a bold and courageous life, too. Unfortunately in life we often have to work with people who are immature and egocentric. They can't see past themselves and haven't truly learned to serve in humility. I used to be one of those people. When I grew out of that, I began to prosper and experienced great success in my career in public education.

But as you begin to elevate the skill (quality) of your enemy improves, too. You have to overcome something greater than your current level to be promoted. Therefore warfare to get to the next level gets ramped up. If you don't know or don't understand this, you may respond as I did and cower in fear and allow a weaker but louder and more persistent enemy to wear you down and run you out. It can happen - I'm a witness - that a less intelligent enemy can defeat you because of fear. It's not that you're necessarily afraid of them, but the spirit of fear is at work against you. It's alive and powerful and grows with every sliver of energy you give it. It sits on your head like a hoodie pulled tight and getting tighter and wraps itself around your brain clouding your thoughts and smothering your smarts. Watch out, boy, fear'll chew up.

You have the authority and right to live a fearless life. But you're the only one who can overcome fear completely for yourself, or at least eliminate it in certain areas of your life. I know from mentoring that there are some people who truly believe to the point of arguing with me that fear in some areas is not only normal but required. I disagree. In my experience, being that fear is a living organism - like germs - once you feed it in one area it's only a matter of time before it spreads.

I overcame fear by learning to live life as one who forgives. I don't know what it is about forgiving others that defeated fear for me, but it did. That's power. It's supernatural. I stripped my soul and mind of dues owed me by anyone from my past (and still do as days go by for current situations because forgiveness is lifestyle) and I became the owner of peace that passes all understanding.

Are you ready to live a fearless life? Do you want the confidence to face any enemy - seen or unseen - without batting an eye? If your answer is, "Yes," than schedule a call or book a mentoring package today. Life is too short to live afraid.